Whenever an event is held annually for the benefit of business growth in the community, and has lasted for 29 years, there is something fundamentally progressive about it.

Recently, the Bilal Center held its annual Testimonial to Leadership Benefit Dinner honoring three outstanding business entities: Aadib Abdullah, who received the Com­munity Service Award; the Kim­borough Family, who received the Entre­preneur Award; and Drs. Nwa­chukwu A. & Vickie M. Anakwenze, who received the Humanitarian Award. The guest speaker was Vivian Powers, herself a business owner, who outlined some of her struggles that rewarded her with a successful business for the last 60 years.

One of the highlights of the evening was the reading of a letter by the grand-daughter of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, Halimah Muham­mad, about the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture’s desire to include archival materials about the Nation of Islam in the development for its inaugural opening, scheduled for 2015 on the National Mall.

The opening and closing prayer was given by Imam Talib Abdullah, and the closing remarks were given by Imam Abdul Karim Hasan.